Narrative of the Voyage of H.M.S. Rattlesnake, Commanded By the Late Captain Owen Stanley - Volume 2 - John MacGillivray (best novels of all time .txt) 📗

a Papuan language than, at the first glance, exists. Let us verify this by reference to some words which relate to the human body, and its parts.

COLUMN 1: ENGLISH. COLUMN 2: ERROOB. COLUMN 3: MASSIED. COLUMN 4: KOWRAREGA. COLUMN 5: GUDANG.

Nose : pit : pichi : piti : -. Lips : - : anka : - : angka. Cheek : baag : - : baga : baga. Chin, jaw : iba : ibu : ibu : ebu. Navel : kopor, kupor : kupor : kupar : kopurra. Eye : - : dana : dana : dana. Skin : egur : - : - : equora. Vein : kerer : kirer : kerur : kerur. Bone : lid : - : rida : -. Sore : bada : - : bada : -.

Few Australian vocabularies are thus similar-a fact which may be said to prove too much; since it may lead to inference that the so-called Papuan tongue of Torres Strait is really Australian. Nevertheless, although I do not absolutely deny that such is the case, the evidence of the whole body of ethnological fact-e.g. those connected with the moral, intellectual, and physical conformation of the two populations-is against it.

And so is the philology itself, if we go further. The Erroob pronouns are:

Me ka. You ma. His eta. Mine ka-ra. Your ma-ra.

All of which are un-Australian.

Are we then to say that all the words of the table just given are borrowed from the Australian by the Papuans, or vice versa? No. Some belong to the common source of the two tongues, pit nose being, probably, such a word; whilst others are the result of subsequent intercourse.

Still, it cannot absolutely be said that the Erroob or Miriam iongue is not Australian also, or vice versa. Still less, is it absolutely certain that the former is not transitional between the New Guinea language and the Australian. I believe, however, that it is not so.

The doubts as to the philological position of the Miriam are by no means diminished by reference to the nearest unequivocally Papuan vocabulary, namely that of Redscar Bay. Here the difference exceeds rather than falls short of our expectations. The most important of the few words which coincide are:

COLUMN 1: ENGLISH. COLUMN 2: REDSCAR BAY. COLUMN 3: ERROOB.

Head : quara : kerem. Mouth : mao : mit lips. Testicles : abu : eba penis. Shoulder : paga : pagas upper arm.

On the other hand, the Redscar Bay word for throat, kato, coincides with the Australian karta of the Gudang of Cape York. Again, a complication is introduced by the word buni-mata eyebrow. Here mata eye, and, consequently, buni brow. This root re-appears in the Erroob; but there it means the eyeball, as shown by the following words from Jukes' Vocabulary:

Eye : irkeep Eyebrow : irkeep-moos eye-hair. Eyeball : poni. Eyelid : poni-pow eyeball-hair.

Probably the truer meaning of the Redscar Bay word is eyeball.

No inference is safer than that which brings the population of the Louisiade Archipelago, so far, at least, as it is represented by the Vocabularies of Brierly Island and Duchateau Island, from the eastern coast of New Guinea. What points beyond were peopled from Louisiade is another question.

For the islands between New Ireland and New Caledonia our data are lamentably scanty; the list consisting of:

1. A short vocabulary from the Solomon Isles. 2. Short ones from Mallicollo. 3. The same from Tanna. 4. Shorter ones still from Erromanga and 5. Annatom. 6. Cook's New Caledonian Vocabulary. 7. La Billardiere's ditto.

The collation of these with the Louisiade has led me to a fact which I little expected. As far as the very scanty data go, they supply the closest resemblance to the Louisiade dialects, from the two New Caledonian vocabularies. Now New Caledonia was noticed in the Appendix to the Voyage of the Fly (volume 2 page 318) as apparently having closer philological affinities with Van Diemen's Land, than that country had with Australia; an apparent fact which induced me to write as follows: "A proposition concerning the Tasmanian language exhibits an impression, rather than a deliberate opinion. Should it, however, be confirmed by future researches, it will at once explain the points of physical contrast between the Tasmanian tribes and those of Australia that have so often been insisted on. It is this-that the affinities of language between the Tasmanian and the New Caledonian are stronger than those between the Australian and Tasmanian. This indicates that the stream of population for Van Diemen's Land ran ROUND Australia, rather than across it." Be this as it may, the remark, with our present scanty matcrials, is, at best, but a suggestion-a suggestion, however, which would account for the physical appearance of the Tasmanian being more New Caledonian than Australian.

The chief point of resemblance between the Louisiade and the New Caledonian is taken from the numerals. In each system there is a prefix, and in each that prefix begins with a labial letter-indeed the wa of New Caledonia and the pahi of Louisiade seem to be the same roots.

1. Brierly Island : paihe-tia. Cook's New Caledonia : wa-geeaing. La Billardiere's New Caledonia : oua-nait.

2. Brierly Island : pahi-wo. Cook's New Caledonia : wa-roo. La Billardiere's New Caledonia : oua-dou.

3. Brierly Island : paihe-tuan. Cook's New Caledonia : wa-teen. La Billardiere's New Caledonia : oua-tguien.

4. Brierly Island : paihe-pak. Cook's New Caledonia : wa-mbaeek. La Billardiere's New Caledonia : oua-tbait.

5. Brierly Island : paihe-lima. Cook's New Caledonia : wa-nnim. La Billardiere's New Caledonia : oua-nnaim.

6. Brierly Island : paihe-wona. Cook's New Caledonia : wa-nnim-geeek. La Billardiere's New Caledonia : oua-naim-guik.

7. Brierly Island : pahe-pik. Cook's New Caledonia : wa-nnim-noo. La Billardiere's New Caledonia : oua-naim-dou.

8. Brierly Island : paihe-wan. Cook's New Caledonia : wa-nnim-gain. La Billardiere's New Caledonia : ou-naim-guein.

9. Brierly Island : paihe-siwo. Cook's New Caledonia : wa-nnim-baeek. La Billardiere's New Caledonia : oua-naim-bait.

10. Brierly Island : paihe-awata. Cook's New Caledonia : wa-nnoon-aiuk. La Billardiere's New Caledonia : oua-doun-hic.

The Redscar Bay numerals are equally instructive. They take two forms: one with, one without, the prefix in ow, as recorded by Mr. Macgillivray.

This system of prefix is not peculiar. The Tanna and Mallicollo numerals of Cook are:

COLUMN 1: ENGLISH. COLUMN 2: TANNA. COLUMN 3: MALLICOLLO.

One : r-eedee : tsee-kaee Two : ka-roo : e-ry. Three : ka-har : e-rei Four : kai-phar : e-bats Five : k-reerum : e-reeum Six : ma-r-eedee : tsookaeee Seven : ma-ka-roo : gooy Eight : ma-ka-har : hoo-rey Nine : ma-kai-phar : good-bats. Ten : ma-k-reerum : senearn.

Here, although the formations are not exactly regular, the prefixion of an initial syllable is evident. So is the quinary character of the numeration. The prefix itself, however, in the Tanna and Mallicollo is no labial, as in the Louisiade and New Caledonian, but either k or a vowel.

The next fact connected with the Louisiade vocabularies is one of greater interest. Most of the names of the different parts of the body end in da. In the list in question they were marked in italics; so that the proportion they bear to the words not so ending was easily seen. Now it is only the words belonging to this class that thus terminate. Elsewhere the ending da is no commoner than any other.

What does this mean? If we look to such words as mata-da eyes, sopa-da
lips, maka-da teeth, and some other naturally plural names, we should infer that it was a sign of number. That this, however, is not the case is shown by the equivalents to tongue, nose, and other single members where the affix is equally common. What then is its import? The American tongues help us here:

COLUMN 1: ENGLISH. COLUMN 2: MBAYA. COLUMN 3: ABIPONI. COLUMN 4: MOKOBI.

Head : na-guilo : ne-maiat : -. Eye : ni-gecoge : na-toele : ni-cote. Ear : na-pagate : - : -. Nose : ni-onige : - : -. Tongue : no-gueligi : - : -. Hair : na-modi : ne-etiguic : na-ccuta. Mand : ni-baagadi : na-pakeni : na-poguena. Foot : no-gonagi : - : -.

COLUMN 1: ENGLISH. COLUMN 2: MOXA (1).* COLUMN 3: MOXA (2). COLUMN 4: MOXA (3).

(*Footnote. These are three different dialects.)

Head : nu-ciuti : nu-chuti : nu-chiuti Eye : nu-chi : - : nu-ki Ear : nu-cioca : - : -. Nose : nu-siri : nu-siri : -. Tongue : nu-nene : nu-nene : nu-nene. Hand : nu-bore : nu-boupe : nu-bore. Foot : ni-bope : - : ni-bope.

Now in these, and in numerous other American tongues, the prefix is the possessive pronoun; in other words, there is a great number of American languages where the capacity for abstracting the thing possessed from the possessor is so slight as to make it almost impossible to disconnect the noun from its pronoun. I believe, then, the affixes in question have a possessive power; and am not aware that possessive adjuncts thus incorporated have been recognised in any of the languages for these parts; indeed, they are generally considered as American characteristics.

How far does their presence extend? In the New Caledonian vocabulary of La Billardiere we find it. The names of the parts of the body all take an affix, which no other class of words does. This is gha, guai, or ghai, or other similar combination of g with a vowel. In Van Diemen's Land, an important locality, we find the following series of words, which are submitted to the judgment of the reader.

COLUMN 1: ENGLISH. COLUMN 2: WESTERN TASMANIAN.

Foot : lula. Leg : peea piya posteriors, Brumer I. Thigh : tula turi knee, Brumer I. Belly : cawara-ny. Neck : denia. Ears : lewli-na. Nose : me-na. Eyes : pollatoola matara-pulupulura eyelashes, Brierly I. Hair : pareata. Hair : palani-na. Face : manrable. Mouth : ca-nia. Teeth : yannalople yinge-da, Brierly I. Tongue : tulla-na. Arm : alree. Fist : reannema-na. Head : pulbea-ny.

Here the termination na appears elsewhere, as in mema-na fight, nabagee-na sun; but by no means so frequently, nor yet with such an approach to regularity.

COLUMN 1: ENGLISH. COLUMN 2: CIRCULAR HEAD.

Hair : parba. Hand : rabal-ga. Foot : rabuc-ka. Head : ewuc-ka. Eyc : mameric-ca. Nose : rowari-ga. Tongue : mamana mimena, Brumer I. Teeth : cawna. Ear : cowanrig-ga.

Here, however, it must not be concealed that the termination ka, or ga, occurs in other words, such as tenal-ga laugh, tar-ga cry, teiri-ga walk, lamuni-ka see. These, however, are verbs; and it is possible (indeed probable) that the k or g is the same as in the preceding substantives, just as the m in su-m, and ei-mi (Greek) is the m in meus, me, and eme (Greek). Still, this will not apply throughout; e.g. the words like lalli-ga kangaroo, para-ka flower, and others.

COLUMN 1: ENGLISH. COLUMN 2: EASTERN TASMANIAN.

Eye : lepe-na Ear : pelverata. Elbow : rowella Foot : langa-na Fist : trew Head : pathe-na-naddi Hair : cetha-na Hand : anama-na nema-da, Brumer I. Knee : nannabena-na. Leg : lathana-ma Teeth : yan-na yinge-da, Brierly I. Tongue : me-na mime-na, Brumer I. Chin : came-na. Neck : lepera. Breast : wagley.

Here, the number of other words ending in na is very considerable; so considerable that, if it were not for